Package-delivering apparatus



May 20, 1924.

.F. J. s'roRcH ET Al. PACKAGE DELIVERING APPARATU Filed Feb. ze, 1923 a sheets-sheen 1 JF FWZ if ,i f

May 20 v1924.

F. J. STORCH ET AL PACKAGE DELIVERINQ APPARATUS Filed Feb. 2e

Z Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented May 20, 1924.

UNITED STATES 1,494,640 PATENr oFFicE.

FRANK J. STORCH AND ELGIE R. SHAFFER, F COLUMBUS, OHIO.

PACKAGE-DELIVERING APPARATUS.

' Application led February 26, 1923. Serial No. 621,343.

ments in Package-Delivering Apparatus, of

presence of a person in the room into which which the following is a specification.

The present invention is directed to improvements in package delivering apparatus.

The primary object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of this character so constructed that packages of various kinds can be delivered through the wall of a building into a room without necessitating the the packages are delivered.

A further object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of this character so constructed that packages will be protected against surreptitious removal from the outside after the packages have been delivered.

A. still further object of the invention is to provide delivery apparatus constructed in such manner that after one party delivers a package or packages a succeeding party can not gain access to the packages previously delivered, the construction being such that each succeeding delivery of packages will force the precedingly delivered packages further away from the delivery chamber of the apparatus.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a delivery apparatus which can be installed in finished buildings or during the construction of a building and when installed will oiferfan attractive appearance and serve as a seat or the like for a room in the building.

With these and other objects in view, as will appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists in the novel features of construction, combinations of elements and arrangements of parts, and hereinafter to be'.

fully described and pointed out in the appended claims.

ln the accompanying drawing:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of the apparatus showing the same installed in a section of a wall,

Figure 2 is a horizontal sectional view through the same,

Fi ure 3 is a sectional view on line 3-3 of F1 re 1, showing the delivery mechanism 1n its receiving position,

Figure 4 is a similar view showing the delivery mechanism in its position after the delivery of packages,

Figure 5 is a fragmentary top plan view of the cable operating mechanism,

Figure 6 is a sectional view on the line 6-64 of Figure 3,

.Figure 7 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view through the cable operating mechanism,

Figure 8 is an end view of one of the cable operating drums, i

Figure 9 is a fragmentary side elevation of the closure, and

Figure 10 is a detail view of the crank handle.

To install the apparatus it is necessary to provide the building wall 1 with an opening 2 in which is mounted a casement 3, the outer end of which opens to the outside of the wall and is normally closed by a hinged door'4. The inner end of the casement communicates with the delivery chamber 5 of the housing 6 which is located adjacent and extends longitudinally of the inner face of the wall 1 as clearly shown in Figure 1 of the drawing.

This housing comprises side and end walls 7 and 8, respectively, a bottom 9, and end partitions 10, -said housing being closed by a hingedly connected top 11 which closes the receiving chamber 12 of the housing, there being a top plate 13 for the delivery cham@ ber k5, as more clearly illustrated in Figures 3 and -4, there being a compartment 14 located above the chamber 5 which is closed by a top 15. It will be observed that since the housing 6 is located within a room of a building the same will effectively serve as a seat, and will in no way detract from the appearance of the room in which it is located.

The sides of the housing are provided with directly opposed grooves 16 which serve as guides for the side edges of the flexible partition 17, which when in the position as shown in Figures 2, 3 and 6 shuts 0H communication betwen the chambers 5 and 12 so that when the packages are deposited in the latter access to the former from the outside of the building is prevented.

Arranged in the compartment 14 are spaced supports 18 in which are journaled havin spiral grooves 21, and secured in any suitable manner in the ends of certain of said grooves are the `op osite ends of a cable 22, which is capable of) being lirst wound in one direction and then in another upon sald drum according to the direction in which the drum is rotated, said cable being secured as at 23, intermediate its ends to one end of the partition 17, whereby when the drum is rotated to the right the cable will cause said partit-ion to slide to its closed position, as shown in Figure 3, said partition moving to its open position when the drum is rotated in a reverse direction. The cable 22 is trained around ulle s 24and 25, the former being supporte byt e adjacent partition and the latter is carried by the shelf 26 which overhangs the partition 17 when said partition isin its closed position.

Slidable in the chamber 5 is'a vertically disposed follower 27 which has secured to its lower corners strips 28 which are adapted to slide in the guide grooves 29 formed at the juncture of the lower edges of the sides 8 and -side edges of the bottom 9.

The construction of these grooves is such that the strips can slide freely but can not tilt, thereby assuring that the follower will be held in a true vertical position.

Loosely mounted adjacent the ends of the shaft 19 are supplemental drums 30, which are provided with spiral grooves 31, said drums having their inner ends provided with stops 32 for cooperation with pins 33 carried by the inner face of tne disks 34, vsaid disks being ixed to the shaft 19, and consequently are compelled to rotate therewith.

A pair of cables 35, preferably continuous, are provided and have one of their ends fixed to the strips 28 adjacent the follower 27, as at 36, the other ends being fixed to the remote ends of said strips, as at 37. These cables are partially wound intermediate their ends upon the drum and are guided in their winding and unwinding by the grooves 31.

Each partition 10 is provided with vertically spaced .pulleys 38 around which the cables are trained so that portions thereof will travel in vertical and horizontal positions.

Fixed adjacent one end of the shaft 19 is a gear 39 which has meshing therewith a pinion 40 fixed to the shaft 41. The shaft 41 is journaled in the bracket 42 and adja-y cent support 18 and has pivotally connected thereto a crank handle 43, there being a sleeve 44v capable of being slid over the pivotal connection between the handle 43 and shaft 41 to hold the former in the position as shown in dotted lines in Figure 10 for conveniently rotating the shaft 41 and thus the shaft 19. When the sleeve 44 is in the position shown in full lines in Figure 10 the crank handle is folded and will be concealed in the easement 3 so that the door 4 can be closed.

` A pinion 45 is fixed to the shaft 19 and rests against the gear 39. Cooperative with.

the outer end of the shaft 41 andsleeve 44 are received to permit the closure to slide without interference.

VWhen the follower 27 and partition 17 are in the positions as shown in Figures 2 andA 3 the closure 47 is in its open position and packages can be placed in the chamber 5 in advance of the follower and since the partition 17 is in its closed position communication between the chambers 5 and 12 is cut off so that a person can not reach from the chamber 5 into the chamber 12 to remove packages previously deposited therein. After packages have been placed in the chamber 5 and in advance of the follower 27 the crank handle 43 is turned in an anticlockwise direction by the operator through the medium of the pinion 40 and gear 39 thereby imparting rotary movement to the shaft 19, whereupon the pinion 4() will, owing to its meshing relation with the rack bar 46 cause the closure 47 to slide to partially close the entrance to the chamber 5, and continued rotation of the shaft 19 will cause each disk 30 to make a complete revolution which causes the pins 33 carried thereby to engage the stops 32 whereby movement will be successively imparted to the drum 20 and supplemental drums 30 to cause the saine to rotate to the right. In other words the drum 20l -will first rotate to cause the cable 22 to travel in ya direction to raise the partition 17 to finally assume the position as shown in Figure 4, and just previous to the partition assuming this position the drums 30 begin to rotate also to the right thus causing the cables 35 to travel in a direction to move the follower 27 toward the'chamber 12 to push packages in advance thereof into vsaid chamber and after the follower has thus moved, the closure 47 will have entirely closed the entrance opening to the chamber 5. Since the closure 47 slides to its closed position as the follower is moving toward the chamber 5 and the partition 17 is moving to its open or elevated position said closure will prevent a person from reaching into the chamber 5 to remove packages previously deposited therein. By the provision of the gear ber 12 when the closure 47 is partially open a door 51 is provided and is hingedly mounted in thev entrance of the chamber 5,

said door being so arranged that when in its open position it will be in the path of movement of the closure 47 which will swing the same to its closed position as said closure slides to its closed position. e

T0 return the follower 27 to its normal position in the chamber 5, the handle 43 is rotated in a clockwise direction thereby' reversing the -travel of the follower 27 and partition 17 and at which time the closure has slid to its open position so that a succeeding delivery of packages can be made.

It will be of course understood that when the follower 27 is in its normal position Within the chamber 5 that the door 4 will be closed to prevent dirt, dust or any foreign matter from entering said chamber, and since the top 11 can be raised the packages delivered to the receiving chambercan be removed by a person within the house. Thus it will be seen that an apparatus has been produced whereby packages can be delivered safely without the necessity of the occupant of a house being present.

What is claimed is:

1. A package delivery apparatus comprising a housing ada ted to be placed interiorly of a building wal said housing comprising a delivery chamber and a receiving chamber, means for normali cutting off communication between sai chambers, and means mounted in the delivery chamber and movable into the receiving chamber when said chambers are in communication.

2. A package delivery apparatus comprising a housing, said housing comprising a delivery chamber and a receivin chamber, a Vfollower movable longitudina ly .within the delivery chamber, a partition for preventing communication between said chambers when the follower is located in the delivery chamber, and means for successively operating the partition and follower to permit4 the latter to move into -the receiving chamber when the former is elevated to. afford communication between said chamber.

3. A package deliver apparatus, comprising in combination a uilding wall having an opening therein, of a housing located adjacent the inner 'face of the wall and including a delivery chamberv and a receiving chamber communicating with each other, the former chamber being in communication with said opening, a normally open closure foi` the entrance of the delivery chamber, a

partition for normally cutting ofi or affordthe follower,

ing communication between the chambers, means for moving packages from the delivery chamber to the receiving chamber, means for moving the partition to afford communication between said chambers, and means for causing the package moving means to move packages from the delivery chamber into the receivin chamber and to simultaneously move t e closure to close the entrance to the delivery chamber.,

4. A package delivery apparatus comprising a housing including a delivery chamber and a receiving chamber, a flexible partition for normally cutting off communication between the chambers, a follower slidable in the delivery chamber, a main drum and supplemental drums, the supplemental drums and connected with a cable windable on the main drum and connected with the partition, and means for rotating said drums to actuate the cables to first elevate the partition to afford communication between said chambers and then move the follower into the receiving chamber to depositv packages therein from the delivery chamber. y

5. A package delivery apparatus comprising'in combination an openinv therein, of a housing including a delivery chamber and a receiving chamber, the former chamber being in communication with the wall opening, al iexible partition for cutting oil' communication between said chambers, a follower slidable in the delivery chamber, a closure arranged between the wall opening andv delivery chamber, means for elevatin the partition to aHord communication cause the follower to move into the receiving chamber, and means to move the closure to close the wall opening when the partition is elevated and the follower is in the receiving chamber.

6. A package delivery apparatus comprising a housing having a delivery chamber and a receiving chamber, a follower slidable in the delivery chamber, a partition normally disposed between the chambers 'to-cut oli' communication therebetween, a shaft supported by the housing and having a main and supplemental drums associated there-V with, a cable windable on the main drum and connected with -the partition, cables windable on the supplemental drums and connected with the follower, and means forV rotating the shaft to successively operate the main drum and supplemental drums to elevate the partition and slide the follower from the delivery chamber into the receiving chamber.

In testimony whereof we affix our signa-- t r s.

u e Y FRANK J.- s'roRcH.

ELGIE R. sHAFrER.

cables vwindable on a building wall having etween the chambers and to g 

